Only Forever
by SeraphimK
Summary: He did not know, nor did he care why he desired her so. The reason was not important. All that mattered was the fact that he wanted her, and he always got what he wanted.


Just one of many possible interpretations of Jareth and his misguided love for Sarah. Be warned, there's no dialogue and hardly a plot--this is more of a character analysis than a story (though it's not written in essay form or anything). But it does offer possible explanations for a few aspects of the movie, so you might find it interesting.

Labyrinth is a movie that can be interpreted and appreciated on many different levels. I guess that's why it's so fascinating, and inspires me to write this even though it's probably very boring. xD

sigh I don't own Labyrinth and I make no money from this. These disclaimers are so repetitive and bothersome...

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He knew not how he came to be Goblin King. He did not even know how old he was, or how he came to be alive. Memories of childhood eluded him; he found that he could not even imagine himself as a child--as anything other than what he was at that moment; and he did not know if this was because he had been in existence far too long to recall such a long gone time, or if it was because he had never been a child. It was possible that his mind simply was not capable of storing memories infinitely; that, as time passed, he continually lost a bit of his personal history because his memory bank had reached its limit. He thought that this idea was sad--the idea that he was always moving forward, always making room for the new, and forever losing the old. Whether this was true or not, he at least imagined that he could feel the past slipping away, and that he was incapable of grasping it.

Eventually, he supposed, he would even forget Sarah.

Yet this had not always been his prime concern. At one time--not so long ago, if his deceptive memory could be trusted--he had feared that he was _being_ forgotten.

**...**

Long ago (or not so long ago?), people knew and feared him. They spoke of an otherworldly king who snatched newborns from their cradles and replaced them with sickly duplicates. So great was their fear that they performed rituals upon the birth of their children to protect them, and placed nails and pieces of iron and other powerless objects around the cradle with the mistaken idea that they would ward off evil creatures. But they also used the powers of the infamous king to their advantage, wishing away unwanted children. For they all knew that in order for a baby to be taken, someone must call upon the Goblin King to take it. And deep down, even though they comforted themselves by devising ridiculous ways to protect themselves against otherworldly beings, they knew that once someone was wished away there was nothing they could do to prevent it.

This was the golden age of Jareth's reign, or at least the highlight of whatever portion of his life he could remember. He was not sure how long it lasted. All he knew was that eventually, his reputation dwindled to that of a popular legend, then to an obscure fairy tale, and finally to nothing. Time passed monotonously, and humans no more entered the realm of the Underground. He knew that he had been forgotten, and this was a far more pressing matter (at the moment) than his own forgetfulness.

During this dreary time, Jareth began to realize that he was lonely--indeed, that he had always been lonely, but had been too busy to notice. Now that he had time to dwell on the matter, he realized that as far as he knew, he had never known anyone other than his imbecilic subjects. Before, he had been content to revel in his power and obvious superiority over the goblins and other residents of the Underground. He answered to no one, but all answered to him. Whatever he wanted, he received, for he intimidated his subjects too much for them to deny him anything. This was all Jareth had ever known, ever wanted, until he had time to consider the tragic paradox: that always getting what you want is utterly unsatisfying.

He did not fully comprehend it. He understood it only enough to realize that he desperately wanted the company of someone new and different--not the collective lot of dimwitted, smelly, pesky goblins. And though the realization of his loneliness dawned somewhere deep within him, he believed it to be mere boredom. If he did not restore his presence in the humans' world, he felt the boredom would consume him.

And so he set to work, creating the book that would be the human world's portal into the Underground as well as his connection to whoever possessed it. He called upon the deepest Magic, and soon the book literally created itself. His only contribution was the inclusion of the words that, when spoken, would spirit away some unsuspecting human into his realm. The other contents of the book mattered little to him, and the personal agenda of the Magic he called upon did not matter at all. He only cared that the words were known once again in the human world, if only by one person.

He was very attentive at first, keeping a watchful eye on his crystal orb, watching as the book fell into the possession of various humans. But none of them spoke the words. Most did not read the book long enough to find the words, and many who came into possession of it did not as much as open it. It seemed that what they believed to be mere fairy tales had no place in their world any longer. Jareth continued to watch, disgusted by their lack of interest in anything other than the mundane. Humans, he thought, had degenerated into something even more dull than the goblins. He gave up, and soon the crystal orb fell blank and silent as the book gathered dust in someone's attic.

Another incalculable stretch of time passed, as devoid of interest as ever. Jareth had nearly forgotten the little red book altogether when he finally heard the voice. It drifted through his dismally silent, empty chambers, musical and sweet to his ears. He looked about, startled, until he remembered the abandoned book. Then he rushed to his crystal orb, following the melodious voice that inexplicably mesmerized him.

She was not like the other humans. Jareth watched as she acted out the book, bringing it to life in the only way she could. Though she did not believe it was real, Jareth knew that she desperately wanted it to be. So he waited for an oppurtunity to lure her into the Underground, where he would keep her forever and never suffer this boredom again.

He wanted her and only her. Nothing, no one else would do. He did not know, nor did he care why he desired her so. The reason was not important. All that mattered was the fact that he wanted her, and he always got what he wanted.

The waiting might have killed him, had he been mortal. Everything he had ever wanted had been carried out by his subjects or conjured by his powers immediately, so he was not accustomed to waiting. He even began to doubt that he had ever truly wanted anything; the immediacy of receiving whatever he commanded eliminated want. Never before had it required effort, and hardly had it required time. For the first time, he felt an overwhelming desire for something that he could not instantly have. His want became longing.

**...**

Jareth laughed bitterly as he recalled his ignorance of his own motives. It was so painfully clear to him now that the reason for his desire _did_ matter--more than anything else, it mattered.

He had fallen in love with the girl.

Admittedly, his initial interest in her was as selfish as every other fleeting want he had experienced. His so-called boredom was actually loneliness, and he longed for someone to relieve it. Sarah piqued his interest because she was remarkably similar to him--selfish, spoiled, and wary from the tired routine of her monotonous life. At the time, he had not cared enough to recognize this as a reason for his interest in her (what did reasons matter?), but now he knew that deep down, he had only wanted someone who understood him.

He had watched her struggle through his labyrinth, tripped her up at every turn, laughed at this new game. After all, he was the only person that mattered, and everyone else was a mere toy. This was his attitude as he strung the girl along, taking amusement in her setbacks and frustrations. Eventually she would give up and surrender to him, and forever remain his toy.

But gradually he realized that she would not give up, that her will was as strong as his; and simultaneously, he drew closer to the realization that she was more than a toy to him. To own her as a trinket would be unsatisfying, but he would realize this too late.

He had spent his entire life intimidating and frightening wretched little goblins that catered to his every whim. This was all he had ever known, and the only way he knew to treat Sarah. But he soon found that it did not work. And so he tempted her with the only offer that he considered desireable: he offered her everything she had ever wanted--a privilege only he had ever known. Getting what he wanted was all that mattered to him, and he could not imagine that anything else in the world mattered to anyone.

**...**

He watched her through his crystal orb. It tormented him, yet it was all he cared to do anymore. Goblins ran amuck outside his private chambers, unsupervised; chaos reigned in the Underground now, and he did not care. Power was no longer important. Nothing was important except that which he had let slip through his fingers, realizing its significance too late.

He still longed for her, but desire was no longer his driving force. He recalled his last desperate attempt to tempt Sarah into submitting to him. By that time he had begun to understand his feelings enough to assign the word "love" to his obsession with the girl, though he did not understand the nature of this new concept, "love."

Now he understood that this newfound love would have evaporated if Sarah had submitted to him. As pained as he was that he had understood love too late, he was proud of her. She had given up everything she had ever wanted for her brother.

That was love.

Now he faced another tragic paradox: the very nature of the girl that had caused her to reject him was the very reason he longed for her. Had she accepted his offer, she would have no longer been passionate, willful, strong, selfless Sarah. To be with her would be to destroy the only thing he had ever loved.

The book had known more than he had. He now knew that the sacred Magic had a will and an understanding far surpassing his own, and it had meant for all of this to happen. It had known what Jareth would subject the girl to, and it had known that in order to defeat him Sarah would have to mature.

And it had known that Jareth would learn what it meant to love.

He smiled at her image in the crystal. So he had a purpose in the story, after all. That was the only thought that comforted him: he had helped his beloved Sarah discover what was truly important.

He lacked the courage to appear to her again, and the audacity to ask for a second chance; he resigned himself to the fact that he would spend the rest of eternity regretting that he had understood everything too late. And he bitterly regretted that he could not have a second chance. He had experienced longing; love; rejection; regret; and as Sarah had grown through facing the obstacle he presented to her, he had learned what mattered through the new concept of love that she presented to him.

They both had now matured enough to to fulfill each other's deepest desires, but now was too late. And Jareth knew that this was the irony that would consume him for the rest of eternity. Even if the memory of the one thing he loved faded and slipped away over time, he knew the effects of it would always remain. From the moment he first heard her voice, he was doomed to spend the rest of his existence in bitter regret.

And miserable though he was, he found that he was glad to have known something precious enough to regret losing.

--

Reviews would be greatly appreciated! I'd like to know what you think of my interpretation--or at least, one of my many interpretations... (Don't you just love the ambiguity of Jareth's character? It leaves so much room for speculation).

And I'd be interested in any different interpretations you might have. Do share.


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